The Election Commission has derived legal directives on when to hold the next parliamentary election from the televised address delivered by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday.
“In her speech, the prime minister made it clear that the next general election must be held between October 27 and January 24 and earlier we also hinted so,” Election Commissioner Md Shah Newaz told reporters at the EC secretariat on Sunday.
Newaz said the EC would go by the constitution when preparing the political parties’ electoral code of conduct and holding the election. The parties could make suggestions to the commission and the EC would upload that draft suggestions on its website.
Shah Newaz said the EC would accept those suggestions about the electoral code of conduct, which will be applied during the pre-election time.
“We are preparing the electoral code of conduct for the national polls in order to ensure that all political parties enjoy equal rights and none within the government enjoys any extra privileges,” he said, adding that the commission would send the draft of electoral code of conduct to all registered political parties giving sufficient time.
When asked about the polls-time government, Shah Newaz said it was the matter of political parties as the commission was only thinking about how to hold the next general election in a credible manner.
“We are yet to get any specific indication as to whether the next general election will be held without dissolving the parliament or not,” said Shah Newaz, adding that the EC would be clear about the formation of polls-time government when the political parties sit and exchange views on that.
About fixing the next parliamen-tary election date, the election commissioner said the EC would fix it up considering the interests of all political parties.